Villains Want Mercy
Sometimes when defeated by the hero, the villain goes down gracefully. Sometimes he realizes he is doomed and demands the hero to stop fooling around. Sometimes he tries to take the heroes with him. Sometimes the villain is so bad, he will never stop fighting until he is put down for good. This trope is not about those villains. Smug snakes, dirty cowards, and bad guys who suffer from moral decay would rarely go down with their heads held high. For all the bravado and confidence they usually project, they are much more likely to get on their hands and knees and beg for mercy. This also serves to contrast them with the hero, as heroes usually never beg for mercy from the villain in the opposite situation, at least not for themselves. Very rarely, it is the act of a noble wrongdoer who is consistent about offering his foes mercy, and expects the favor to be returned. Depending on where the hero is on the Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism, they might call the villain out on how many people they have denied mercy before sparing them anyway. Others may deliver a "Reason You Suck" speech and leave the villain alive just to spite him. Or they might just scoff at this and dispose of him. If the hero does grant them mercy, they may perform a Heel-Face Turn out of gratitude. However, it is quite very common for the villain to attempt to attack the hero one last time, usually while their back is turned. This will rarely work. Examples Anime *'Iron-Masked Marauder': When surrounded by angry forest Pokémon as they confront him for all the heinous crimes he has committed, the Marauder begs for mercy, but his pleas are ignored, and they tie him up using String Shot. *'Frieza': After being sliced in half by his own attack, Goku was about to leave Frieza to die until Frieza started begging Goku to save his life. Animated Films *Scar: Begs for mercy when he was cornered by Simba by pulling the family card and blaming the hyenas for his own actions, but Simba does not buy it. When Simba decides to spare him, Scar goes to leave, only to throw embers into his nephew's eyes and attack him. Scar later begs mercy from the hyenas only for them to maul him to death. *Gaston: When the Beast holds him by throat and dangles him off of the roof of the castle, threatening to drop him to his death, Gaston pathetically begs the Beast not to hurt him. The Beast gives in and spares Gaston, ordering him to leave the castle for good. However, when Gaston sees the Beast going to reunite with Belle, he sneaks up behind him and stabs him in the back, only to lose his footing and fall to his demise. **In the 2017 remake, like the original animated film, the Beast has Gaston at his mercy and Gaston begs for mercy. The Beast gives in, telling Gaston that he (Beast) is not a monster and angrily orders Gaston to get leave. However, upon seeing the Beast reunite with Belle, Gaston shoots him in the back twice and karma catches up to him when the bridge he's standing on collapses, sending Gaston to his death. *Dag: Otis raises his fist to punch Dag, just as his father did, but instead he lowers his fist and glares at the evil coyote and demands him to NEVER return, before hitting him with a golf club and Dag soars out into the distance while howling in pain. *Shaw: Prepares to shoot Boog when Elliot leaps in front and the bullet hits him instead. This makes Boog enraged and he pins Shaw to the ground and roars fiercely in his face, before tying him up with his own gun. Elliot is then revealed to have survived--the bullet only shot off his remaining antler. *Claude Frollo: When Quasimodo stops Frollo from killing him with a dagger and angrily approaches him, Frollo begs for mercy, but Quasimodo refuses as he finally sees the man who raised him as an evil, sadistic monster. *Beauty Smith: When White Fang corners him at a shed, Beauty Smith begs for mercy and Maggie orders White Fang to not kill him before he and his henchmen are eventually arrested by Hank. *Ernesto de la Cruz: After his true nature and crimes have been exposed, Ernesto is approached and cornered by Pepita. He meekly begs for mercy, but Pepita roars in his face, carries him in her talons, and sends him flying towards a bell tower where he's crushed by a bell after smacking face-first into it. *Dr. Facilier: After Tiana destroys his talisman, Facilier is cornered by his "Friends on the Other Side" and begs for mercy, promising to pay them back. But the demons ignore his pleas and drag him to their realm where Facilier is killed. *Captain Hook: When Peter Pan traps Hook in a pirate flag and has him at knifepoint, Hook cowardly begs for mercy which Peter accepts by forcing Hook to exclaim he's a codfish and to leave Neverland and never return. Live-Action Films *'Koba': When hanging from the top of a skyscraper after dueling Caesar, Koba begs for mercy as he reminds Caesar of the "Ape Not Kill Ape" rule. However, Caesar coldly tells Koba that he's no ape and drops him to his death. *'Ulysses Klaue': Begs for mercy when T'Challa/Black Panther apprehends him in the South Korean city of Busan and holds his claws at him. *Black Manta: Begs Aquaman to help his father who was trapped in some submarine equipment during their fight, but Aquaman refuses as they are ruthless pirates who murdered innocent sailors and tried to kill Aquaman. *Alistair Patton: When the black stallion defeats him, Jim Craig threatens him with his sword, but spares him and breaks the sword in half before leaving. *Green Goblin: As Spider-Man corners the Green Goblin, the Goblin can't take it anymore and unnmasks himself as Norman Osborn. He begs Peter for forgiveness and to free him from the Goblin persona and "be a son to me now". Peter sympathizes with Norman, but rejects his pleas. Unfortunately, the Green Goblin's hold is strong enough for Norman to attempt to skewer Spider-Man from behind with his glider. Spider-Man ducks and the glider impales Norman instead. With his final breath, Norman tells Peter not to tell Harry about his crimes and dies, leaving Peter in sorrow. *Nute Guneray: Nute Gunray is the remaining surviving Separatist leader after Darth Vader slaughters the entire Separatist council on Mustafar. When cornered by Vader, Gunray pleads for mercy, saying that the war is over and that Darth Sidious promised the Separatists peace. However, Vader ignores his pleas and kills Gunray, slashing him across the chest with his lightsaber. Literature *'Wormtail': Pathetically begs for mercy when he's confronted by Sirius and Remus; later begs for mercy from Harry, Ron, and Hermione after revealing he betrayed Harry's parents to Lord Voldemort. Western Animation *'Bill Cipher': Begs for mercy when he realizes he was tricked into entering Stan's mind and is about to be erased from existence. His only response is getting punched in the face, leading Bill to be destroyed for good. *'Darth Maul': In Clone Wars episode, "The Lawless," Darth Maul begs for mercy when his former master Darth Sidious defeats him at the end of their duel on Mandalore. Quotes }} Gallery NOTE: The limit is for 20 pictures only Wormtail.jpg|Peter "Wormtail" Pettigrew pathetically begging for mercy. Simba & Scar.png|Scar begging Simba for mercy as the latter furiously confronts him for murdering his father. Gaston mercy.jpg|Gaston dropping his pride and begging for mercy as the Beast hoists him over the edge of the roof. Frollo begging for mercy.jpg|Frollo pathetically begging for his life as Quasimodo furiously corners him with his own dagger. Koba.jpg|Koba begging for mercy; using the "Ape Not Kill Ape" law on Caesar. Otis standing up to Dag.png|Dag cornered at the mercy of Otis, who orders him to never return. Prince John begging Don't Hurt me.jpg|Prince John pathetically and childishly begging Robin Hood not to hurt him after he flung his sword. Iron-Masked Marauder surrounded by angry Pokemon.jpg|Iron-Masked Marauder surrounded by the angry forest Pokemon for his ruthless actions. Coward Ernesto.jpg|Ernesto de la Cruz begging for mercy as he is cornered by Pepita. KlaueBeatenDownByPanther.jpg|Ulysses Klaue begs for mercy as he was now cornered by the Black Panther on the city streets of Busan in South Korea. Facilier scared.jpg|Dr. Facilier begging for mercy from his "friends" after his talisman is destroyed and they arrive to punish him. Norman Osborn:Green Goblin begging for mercy.jpg|Norman Osborn unmasks himself and begs Spider-Man to save him from his Green Goblin persona and for Peter to be the son to him. Black Manta- Begging for mercy.jpg|Black Manta begging Aquaman to show mercy for his father who is trapped under some rubble. Darth Maul groveling.png|Darth Maul begging for mercy when his former master Darth Sidious defeats him in a duel. Nute Gunray begging for mercy.png|Nute Gunray begging for mercy before he is killed by Darth Vader. Category:About Villains Category:Absolution Category:Villainous Symbolism Category:Villainous Events